Rydal Press

Dates:

Active 1935

Active 1993

Biographical notes:

The Rydal Press began as a small operation in a private house in Rydal, Pennsylvania. It was owned and operated by Walter L. Goodwin, a member of the Lippincott family. In 1932, Haniel Long, Alice Corbin, Peggy Pond Church, and Witter Bynner came together and decided to establish a cooperative publishing enterprise in Santa Fe. They convinced Goodwin to move his operations from Pennsylvania to the Santa Fe area. In 1933, Goodwin set up his equipment in Tesuque, where he published several books under the Writers' Editions imprint during the first year.

In 1941, Goodwin sold half interest in the press to Gordon Stevenson. Later that year, he sold his remaining half of the press to Dale Bullock. Bullock had been a compositor in Raton, New Mexico, and had moved to Santa Fe. He was a union man, and had worked for several shops in Santa Fe, including the Rydal Press. Bullock did some fine printing (during his tenure, he printed approximately 80 titles), but began to use Rydal Press more for commercial printing. He operated the Rydal Press until 1976, at which time he sold the business and the real estate to Andrea Dewey and Jonathon Carleton. Dewey turned the business into a "quick print" enterprise. Rydal Press was arguably New Mexico's foremost book and commercial printer from 1933 until it was shut down circa 1980. In 1985, Rydal Press was refounded by Clark Kimball, for the purpose of publishing fine books.

*Biographical information provided, in part, from telephone conversations with Clark Kimball and Pamela Smith.

From the guide to the Rydal Press Collection, ., 1947-1978 (bulk 1970-1977), (University of New Mexico. Center for Southwest Research.)